Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1887-03-17
soHoo1 SYSTEMS.
some Plain wsKds Denouneing Ger
tain EHeth0dss

In connection with strong cartoon
recent number Of Puck said /; Two "sys-
tems'i are the curse Of our American
schools, public and private. One Is the
textbook system and tho other IL the
system. They go hand m HAND,
and do their work together. Their work ID
the over. straining Of young bodies sno
the iulling Of young brains. Their Idea OF
these two wretched schemes is to save the
teachers q little labor and great deal OF
brain work. They make IL possible, IN
fact TO be teacher and yet know moth
ing; thus enabling alarge class OF worthy
but ignorant people to get a living WITH
reasonable ease aud certainty Many
man who would otherwise be seeking
vainly position as assistant entry clerk
or light porter is to. day getting a respect
able salary % an instructor OF the young
"a position TO which he could mover Ms
plre we're il not for the text book system.
The system has simplicity 10 recon-
mend il. al the least. A publishers hack
writes a text-book-an English grammar,
or so-called history of the United
States or the world. or first book
| in natural history. Whatever he may
| call it. IL is nothing better than a spirit
less transcript of dull generates and dry
1 technical or statistical facts, culled, OFTEN
| with little attempt at accuracy, from such
| standard authorities "a may be accessible
20 him. Then another hack, who calls
himself n tesoher, hands this book TO the
children given into his care, and tens
them to learn 30 many lines or so many
pages day. He does not teach them
he merely tells them to learn. When the
time for recitation comes, each child re
peats all or part of what he has com
mitted to memory, while the hack com
pares the recitation with the printed page
If the recital aud the textbook agree, tn
child gets a credit of such and such
, figure in record-book. II there ar
discrepancies, the child gets a smalle
! figure. II the two do not agree at all
the child is marked nought or zero. A
the end of the week the hack adds up tn
: child's figures, divides the total by th
: number Of the Rotations, and gives tn
: result 7TS, 33-as Johns or Eliza
Q sayerage Of scholarship This is write
I in a printed form, and sent to the child
9 parents, to be signed and returned.
7 will be seen that there Is no undue stra'
. upon the teachers brain. It would !
y more difficult to measure tape and NAL
y change in dry goods shop.
4 But what senseless, soulless 'systen
d IL is for the poor, helpless children III
70 industrious child tolls and strives al
learns by rote vast mass OF dry, co
v fact, OF the significance and value
= which he knows nothing, and which it
An b ,yond the power OF his young and n
III trained memory to retain for any leng
he of time, or to properly assimilate In a.
i'd way. The idle ohild contents himself wi
ne imperfect recitations, takes home
~ record of slow average scholarship" o.
" accepts the consequent punishment, VIII
oh soeyer it may be. And we are inclined
nd think that ofteniimes he goes out of
he school slavery better off than the CHI
who has strained his mental capacity
the acquisition of useless knowledge
50 knowledge that be cannot use which
If the sort of knowledge that most te
Sit books give.
lg. This assertion is sweeping, but it
OF essentially true. The text-book,tarI
boy can iboundn the states of the UNI
== can repeat the names Of the Presidents
proper order and can tell you when ei
monarch Of England came to the thro
But what does he really know of the
tory, character and resources of his o
country What does he understand
the lesson OF highlands growth and
grandeur Of her pastH And how has
been taught to find out for himself?
knows Of two books of reference
encyclopaedia and dictionary. I
these away from him and he is all at
The learning Of the ages is at his disp,
/ in countless public and private librar
"A but he has no knowledge of what st
u really means he has no power TO dis
guish the useful from the useless-he
not learned to learn History is for
matter of dates; geography a matte
statistics. de eas'not, understand IL
man may know q! i4.st i 80 know
= u Louis XIV VI Francs, snd yer h4g
sc % A.a kook-sileLTes .sal4 take dS'
work of reference to and the date
Louis' birth and death.
II this were the worst OF the text-l
system, it would be bad enough; but
not the worst A base venality has L
it doubly course. The multiplci
Of text books has been carried SO fur
even the most ignorant and though
of ''parents and guardians" must SUI
the existence Of a disgraceful allianc
tween the publishers of school book
CeTlulu Cthhb VI hphebi-toAShHAo
school superintehdents. The books
in many OF our schools are changed
frequency that cannot but excite s
cion. The book that was the stan
last year is Stipulated by new on,
"a season; the boy who has nm edit
1885 is ordered to get one Of 1886. PA
may protest; but the books must BE- b
and paid for, or the responsibility f
boys tagging behind in his studies
not rest with the .hool-teacher at CT
the influences witch are brought Il
upon tho teachers and commission
not often take the form of gross br
In most cases the school an!
reS obliges the publishers only becaus
- oblige him in various ways-by giyil
~ discounts on books and stationery
,in own use, we may suggest, by way
f'S stance. But, unfortunately, it is
sible not u believe that in many ins
-. the influence GOES q great deal
than this. On no other ground
explained the feyeriah anxiety sh
- muny schools to pile study upon
to load down weak, hnlf-grown 81
with books upon books; 10 exact
always under this text book sy
which wear ont yeung bodies and
a. brains, and bring our children to
GA mature, one sided development
W mental faculties at the expe
~ strained aud enfeeblel frames.
HxA ----1<-s-@---------
xaa@ Some u ou' = o prominent cii'z-
THH# been turrd OF rheuMau m OF yea 4 n
nv tiRt wonderful Jait b nisher, Aslvst
&x4zesskQ | Holi Jy all dTug2iSIp for twenty Y